Winter Species In Prince William Sound, Alaska, 1989-2016

The Prince William Sound Science Center conducted a literature search and developed a bibliography of research conducted on biological resources during winter in Prince William Sound (PWS) since the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. The literature search returned 133 unique results documenting the presence of 188 species, including 61 zooplankton, 1 mollusk, 1 echinoderm, 7 crustaceans, 61 fish, 50 birds, and 6 mammal species. However, the species list included with the bibliography is by no means a comprehensive list of all species present in PWS during winter. We were unable to find any published studies or reports documenting sea cucumbers, sea urchins, jellyfish, octopus, and several marine mammal species known to occur in PWS throughout the year. Our bibliography is useful for identifying sensitive biological resources in the Sound and can be used as a tool to inform and update oil spill contingency plans.